On the recordNovember 15, 2011
And it took putting the flood lights on to the situation, where in the middle of tragedy we're looking to change the rules; we are looking for offsets in order to provide assistance to our national farmers' impacted farms under water, valuable farm land being eroded away. And we changed rules? I mean, it was unacceptable. And just speaking to that hardheartedness was an exercise for me that was a learning curve because it took every bit of providing evidence, from pictorial evidence to documentation of loss that finally moved this House to respond to the needs of our farmers. So, that being said, it's about, I think, investing, as has been said here in this special order hour. It's about investing and believing in America. The middle class needs that empowerment. They deserve and require it. Think of it. None of the strata can survive without a powerful middle class. Someone needs to build the product, someone needs to purchase the product. Enhancing the purchasing power, growing consumer demand will drive private sector jobs growth. More expectation, more desire to buy products, you put more people on, you develop product line. It works. It's a simplistic thing to follow. It's a pattern that's sensible. And so what we want to do is make certain that we empower that middle class. We've seen a lot of outbursts about the social and economic injustice out there, and it's about providing a reasonable approach so that our middle class can be vibrant again.…
